1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for separating an objective component including a valuable substance or an impurity, such as a salt, that is produced in the fermentation industry, the pharmaceutical industry, the sugar manufacturing industry, the protein and amino acid industry, the food industry, the dye industry, the pigment industry, the chemical industry, the metal refining industry, the field of waste disposal, and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to a method for efficiently separating an objective component from various crude materials through a combination of washings or extractions and a separation other than membrane treatment.
2. Discussion of the Background
Industrial production in the fermentation industry, the protein and amino acid industry, and the pharmaceutical industry involve culturing of microorganisms for production of amino acids, brewing, production of antibiotics, and the like. For example, a crude liquid product containing a valuable substance, such as an amino acid, is separated from a fermentation broth by means of a separation membrane, a centrifugal separator, etc., and an objective component (valuable substance) is separated from the crude liquid product by evaporation using steam or a like operation, while leaving microbial cells as a residue.
In the dye industry, the pigment industry, the chemical industry, etc., salting out is carried out in production processes, which necessitates removal of the salt as an impurity.
Recovery of any valuable substance remaining in the above-mentioned residue or removal of the salt has been carried out by filtration, decantation, and the like. These conventional techniques for recovery or removal of such an objective component require a large quantity of washing water, which results in an increased amount of drainage and necessitates large-scale installations for drainage disposal. In addition, an appreciable amount of the valuable substance (e.g., dye) unavoidably migrates to the material to be disposed, leading to product loss.
In the dye industry, the pigment industry, the chemical industry and the metal refining industry, extraction has been presently used, and multi-stage extraction has been adopted to recovery of an objective component (valuable substance). In these cases, too, a large quantity of an extracting reagent has been used, and a large amount of energy has been consumed for the subsequent separation of the valuable substance or for drainage disposal.